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In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, on-site construction operations have been dramatically altered. Beginning in March, many construction sites across the United States were temporarily shut down. Only essential projects were able to continue operations. As states begin to reopen their economies, projects are slowly resuming with some major changes to health and safety protocols.
As we look beyond the first wave of the virus, official health and safety recommendations have been uncertain. With primary guidance coming from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and its COVID-19 Every Worker Protection Act of 2020, states have enacted their own policies based on recorded case numbers. This has left many construction companies in a difficult situation, with a flexible approach needed to meet on-site challenges. In an effort to keep employees safe and construction sites operational, traditional health and safety guidelines must be revisited.
Updating Safety Protocols
As site owners and operators contend with new health and safety practices, it’s important to formalize a strategy to meet industry standards. Although each site has individual demands, with so many members of the industry facing similar challenges, knowledge sharing will be an essential first step to new protocols.
At the minimum, new protocols should align with guidelines set out by OSHA, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and state authorities. Although meeting industry standards is pivotal to reopening, construction managers need to understand that all sites are unique. Depending on the project and the site, the COVID-19 safety plan may need to be more restrictive to ensure employees are kept safe.
“In an effort to keep employees safe and construction sites operational, traditional health and safety guidelines must be revisited.”
